The decision reverses a policy imposed by former Sheriff Paul Penzone in response to rising overdose deaths and the arrest of a correctional officer.

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office says employees no longer have to pass through security scanners when entering a jail facility.

A counselor at Lewis Prison in Buckeye was arrested on Jan. 3 after an investigation into drug and contraband cellphone smuggling, according to records filed in Maricopa Superior Court. Berman Comon, hired in 2013, had an office that three inmates used to package drugs for sale in the prison, according to court documents.

Buckeye police are seeking charges against the mother of a toddler who died after being left for hours in a car in the summer afternoon heat.